The Wonderful World of Book Blogging

One of my absolute favourite things to do is to get sucked down into a rabbit hole of a fandom or a particular trend on the internet. I don’t need to be part of the fandom or to care about that trend to enjoy the researching of it. It’s like how I can watch cooking videos and love it while knowing I would hate to actually eat it.

Scratch the surface and you can find whole new worlds online that you didn’t know existed. Some of these worlds are ugly, some beautiful, and some are just the most sublime things you’ve ever seen.

No lie, fam.

If you’re an avid lover of books, not just a reader, but a lover then you need to check out the book blogging scene.

I started blogging on and off about a year ago, posting my reviews to Truly Booked and was blown away by the community that exists.

The amount of people who are part of the blogging scene are just the beginning. There are BookTubers who post their reviews, or make book art, or even run booktubeathons. There are Bookstagrammers who have heartbreakingly gorgeous images that they post on Instagram. There are Discords specifically for Book Blogging, giveaways, and the cheering on of our peers.

When I first started using Goodreads, I noted the communities on there. But the Bookish scene has expanded so far beyond that into a plethora of Bookish goods, friendships, and beauty. I am absolutely in love with what is being done there.

Plus, the focus on Bookstagram means that brands are scrambling to make their covers pretty which I am 100% there for. They say not to judge a book by its cover, but if it has a gorgeous cover it’s more likely to stand out.

It’s easier than ever to find great recommendations and find the books for you. That’s where the real magic comes in to all of this. I have found books that I never would have touched because of the Bookish community.

It’s because of them that I know about Stephanie Gerber’s Caravaland its teen fiction perfection or that I found the quiet heartbreak of Tin Man by Sarah Winman. Both are wildly different books, but I can’t remember the last time I read something that was truly horrid.

That’s what the Bookish community is doing for everyone.

And don’t get me wrong. I’ve definitely read some terrible books while trying to get Truly Booked off the ground. I even took some time away from book blogging just because it felt like such a slog. I thought that the only way to get current, free books would be to start with indie books and work my way up.

To some extent, that’s true. You do need to build a library of content, but that doesn’t mean that you need to go to the very bottom of the barrel. Toronto’s libraries are fantastic and I can get most of the free books I’m looking for there.